“This is Mazing, this is!” cried out about twenty giggling voices at once, and heads poked out from behind the snowmen in all directions.
“Oh, I can’t stand this any longer,” said Peggy. “I wish we were at that party! Any of the other amusements would be better than this one!”
At once the snowmen all toppled over and melted in a trice, and Peggy and the Giant found themselves standing in a great Purple Cave full of rosy light.
All around them danced a multitude of Gnomes, Brownies, Sprites, and every other kind of unusual creature; and a large company of Pixies in fancy dress, who had been playing leap-frog in a corner, came pushing their way through the crowd.
“Oh, you are late!” they cried. “You’ve been Mazing, haven’t you?” and they all burst into a great roar of laughter.
“You’re not being a bit funny,” said the Giant, turning his back on them, and “Here come the Naiads!” he whispered to Peggy. “They only attend the best parties,” and he pointed towards some beautiful tall ladies in green and blue with water lilies in their hair, who were walking up the cave towards them, followed by a crowd of handsome Dryads in brown and yellow.
“Come and play at Flitting,” said one of them, taking Peggy’s and the Giant’s hands. “Those bad-mannered creatures will improve if you take no notice of them. We’ll show you how to play,” and up to the ceiling they all went, and everyone else after them.
Peggy never forgot that wonderful night. When she was tired with darting round the cavern walls, or hunting for diamonds in the dark, she skated with a company of very polite Trolls in a beautiful inner cavern, whose walls were a gleaming mass of rubies. And then the Pixies, who by this time had remembered their manners, crowned her Queen of the Revels with great pomp, and led her off to partake of light refreshments.
These were set out in a great black and yellow cavern which was entirely lighted by glow-worms, cleverly concealed in full-blown yellow roses hung from the roof. Peggy was put at the head of the table with the Giant by her side, and big sugar sweets of every shape and kind were piled upon their plates.
But no sooner had they finished half their helpings than a sudden shout of “Back to work!” “Back to work!” sounded from all sides.